By Edel C. Pinera H.
Jesus, the Wayfarer
Rediscovering the itinerant essence of the early Christians and their call to live the gospel step by step
Origin of the name: Those of the Way
Before the word Christian became popular, those who followed Jesus were known as those of the Way. This expression appears several times in the Book of Acts, where this group is referred to with respect and sometimes fear. The Greek term used is odos, which means “way,” “path,” “journey”. It was not a simple label: it was a profound description of the way of life that Jesus proposed.
The Way was both a physical and a spiritual path. It implied constant transformation, a journey toward the truth, a willingness to leave the old behind and open oneself to the mystery of the Kingdom of God.
“To walk is to follow the Way”
👣 Jesus, the quintessential wayfarer
Jesus didn’t write books or found buildings. Jesus walked. He crossed villages, deserts, mountains, and coastlines. His ministry was eminently itinerant. He taught on the roads, healed along the way, stopped to look into people’s eyes, listen, and touch. And he always moved forward. He never stayed in one place for too long.
His disciples literally followed him. They left their nets, their collection tables, their homes… and walked with him. The Christian life began like this: walking. Every step was a lesson, every path an opportunity to learn, serve, and be transformed.
“Jesus didn’t build temples: he walked among the people”.
Walking as a Spiritual Practice
1. Symbol of Humility, Openness, and Connection
Walking is the most human and humble thing to do. It requires no technology, money, or titles. Those who walk become part of their surroundings. They do not dominate the earth; they walk it with respect. Walking equalizes and connects us: with others, with oneself, with the sacred.
2. Metaphor of Conversion and Transformation
In the Bible, walking is synonymous with change: “Walk before me, and be perfect” (Genesis 17:1). Walking implies movement, evolution, leaving behind what no longer serves us. That is why so many miracles happen along the way. Because it is there, in the uncertain and the open, that the heart softens and is renewed.
“Faith does not sit down, it walks”.
3. Pilgrimages: Steps Toward the Sacred
From the earliest centuries, Christians understood that faith deepens when it is set in motion. Pilgrimages to holy places like Jerusalem, Rome, and later Santiago de Compostela were born. (Post THE PILGRIMAGE, AN ANCIENT PRACTICE; Future Post DISCURSIVE AND POETIC PILGRIMAGE). It wasn’t just the arrival: it was the journey that sanctified, that taught us to depend on God, on our neighbors, and on the rhythm of our own bodies.
The Modern Contradiction
We live in a sedentary age. Many Christians practice their faith from the couch or in the car, far from the sweat of the road. Spirituality has become intellectualized, institutionalized, and even virtualized. But… haven’t we lost something essential in the process?
How can we understand Christ walking among the olive trees if we never go out to walk among the trees? How can we talk about following if our feet don’t move?
“Faith that doesn’t walk stagnates. And stagnant faith rots”. (Post NOT WALKING IS LIKE TURNING INTO A SWAMP)
Call to Action: Walk Again
This post is not a romantic nostalgia for the past, but an urgent call to Christians today: let us recover walking as an act of faith.
Walk every day with purpose, with attention, with gratitude. Walk to pray, to think, to listen. Walk with others, walk alone, walk with God. Recover the ancient paths of soul and body. Rediscover the spirituality of movement.
Because walking is not only healthy: it is profoundly Christian.
“Walking is returning to the Path”.